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Juvenile detention center could reopen by May

LAS CRUCES – Doña Ana County officials said last week that the juvenile detention center, which temporarily closed earlier this year because of low staffing levels at adjacent the adult detention facility, west of Las Cruces, should reopen by next Ma

Juvenile detention center could reopen by May

LAS CRUCES - Doña Ana County officials said last week that the juvenile detention center, which temporarily closed earlier this year because of low staffing levels at adjacent the adult detention facility, west of Las Cruces, should reopen by May.

Although no definite date has been set, the administrator of the Doña Ana County Detention Center, Christopher Barela, said youth detainees would likely return to the juvenile detention center about a year ahead of schedule.

In May, the county’s management decided to temporarily close the youth facility because Barela said he did not have an adequate staff of officers to operate both facilities. Since then, youth detainees have been housed at the old juvenile detention center inside the adult facility.

The detention center at 1850 Copper Loop opened in 1996 with separate facilities for adults and juveniles, a county spokesman said. In 2001, the free-standing juvenile detention center opened with 50 beds and five separate housing areas. As a result, officials closed the youth facility inside the main jail, and it remained shuttered until May.

“Staffing levels (at the adult facility) were at critical levels,” Barela said Friday during an interview. “It was necessary to move the juveniles into the old juvenile facility in order to serve both jail populations. The juveniles are being housed in a facility that’s completely out of sight and sound from the adults.”

Barela attributed the low staffing levels at the adult facility to a number of pressing issues, mainly attrition. But low wages, as well as the stressful nature of being a jail officer, also have contributed to a high turnover rate at the detention center in recent years, he said.

In recent months, however, Barela said he and county officials have been able to implement “compensation adjustments” for jail officers that would give them more competitive pay, in addition to new yearly step increases designed to encourage officers stay longer on the job. These measures, along with more aggressive recruitment, mean the adult detention facility should be adequately staffed by May, he said.

“Once those staffing levels are up, then we’ll reopen the youth detention facility,” county spokesman Jess Williams said Friday. “We’re targeting the middle of May. It could be sooner or later.”

According to Barela, the original plan to deal with staffing shortages included housing youth detainees at the old juvenile detention center for as long as two years.

Still, that timeline isn’t fast enough for some advocates.

The nonprofit, community-outreach organization known as NM Comunidades en Acción y de Fé, or NM Café, has been pushing for officials to reopen the juvenile detention center since they began hearing concerns from community members.

“It wasn’t until our clergy and our faith leaders were like, ‘We think what is happening is really wrong,’ ” Sara Melton, a community organizer for NM Café, said last week. “As people of faith, we can’t sit back and just watch. They’re our community’s children, and therefore, we are responsible for them.”

The organization has many concerns about youth detainees being housed in the same building as the adult facility.

Primarily, Melton said, the group is concerned about privacy and parents’ access to children who are incarcerated.

Juveniles are being housed in what Barela described as one large “dayroom.” At the juvenile detention center that closed in May, there are five separate areas, or “pods,” that could each house 10 detainees.

“The previous facility has many different pods, so they could separate children by severity of offense or by gang affiliations, for example,” Melton said. “They would put them in separate pods to reduce fights and violence. In the current facility, there’s one pod. So all those kids are together. So the risk of violence is increasing, and we have heard accounts of increased violence.”

Both Barela and Williams disputed the allegation of increased violence.

“I wouldn’t say the violence has increased,” Barela said, adding that the “level of tension” among the detainees has remained unchanged since the move into the old youth facility.

Williams said, “There have been no major issues” related to violence among the juveniles.

Another concern for NM Café is that parents have to use a video-conferencing system to visit with their children. Before, parents were able visit their children through a glass partition at the juvenile detention center, Barela said.

He said the video-conferencing system is used only by parents and that lawyers, clergy and health care providers are able to meet one-on-one with the children. However, Melton and members of NM Café contend that there is little privacy for these visits while youth detainees are being housed in the old juvenile facility.

Melton said the group also is concerned that juveniles from neighboring counties were reportedly being transported to other facilities across the state.

“The juvenile detention center also served our neighbors,” Melton said. “When they closed it, they’re not moving Doña Ana County children to far-away detention centers, but they are moving children from, say, Otero and Luna counties, and even parts of Chaparral, to facilities in Gallup and Farmington.”

While Barela called that “an ugly rumor,” he did not say for certain that youth detainees from neighboring counties had been relocated to other facilities across the state. He would only say that “zero” juveniles from Doña Ana County had been moved to other facilities.

According to Barela's figures, 23 juveniles were transitioned into old juvenile detention center in May. As of Friday, he said, there were 11 in the facility.

Since May, Melton said members of NM Café have met with many officials, including judges, county commissioners and state representatives, to ensure the juvenile detention facility reopens as soon as possible. Last month, the group addressed the issue at its “Faith and Family Summit” and later held a prayer vigil at the detention center.

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Members of the community and different faith groups attended a vigil in front of the Doña Ana County Detention Center in October. The vigil, organized by NM Comunidades en Accion y de Fe, or NM CAFé, was held in support of Doña Ana County reopening its juvenile detention center.(Photo: Jett Loe / Sun-News)

Members also recently met with County Manager Julia Brown, she said.

“What I really didn’t hear during our meeting with the county manager was conversation exploring what other options were available besides closing the youth detention center,” said Yvonne El Ashmawi, a member of NM Café.

Melton added, “I think there were other ways the county could have solved the staffing problem before it reached a critical level.”

Williams on Friday confirmed that county officials were considering other options, but he could not say specifically what those options were.

Melton said issue will remain a “top priority” for NM Café until the juvenile detention facility reopens.

When the juvenile detention center does reopen, Barela said he is “confident” it will remain open for years.

“We went 14 or 15 years without a major hitch,” he said. “So unless the economy takes another major downslide or people do not want to do this for a job, I’m confident that it will remain open because of the plan we have developed in terms of pay adjustments and step increases.”